honored companies for demonstrating industry excellence this month at the annual Excellence in Industrial Technologies Awards Banquet and Networking Sessions in San Antonio, TX.

The Awards recognized companies that are predicted to encourage significant growth in their industries, have identified emerging trends before they became the standard in the marketplace, and have created advanced technologies that will catalyze their industries in the near future.

While addressing recipients in his welcome speech, the company’s North American president Art Robbins said, “At Frost & Sullivan we realize how critical it is to highlight best practices and recognize those achievements. My hope, and our mission, is to help you convey the joy associated with success to your employers, employees, shareholders, and your families.”

Winners included:ABB Low Voltage Drives - 2008 Global Low Voltage Electric Drives Company of the Year Award;Cisco Systems Inc . - 2008 Global ROADM Systems Market Leadership of the Year Award;CyboSoft - 2007 North American Model-Free Adaptive Control Technology Leadership Award;Dresser-Rand - 2008 North American Compressed Gas Solutions Company of the Year Award;Emerson Process Management - 2008 Global Automation & Process Control Growth Excellence Company of the Year Award;Endicott Interconnect Technologies Inc. - 2008 North American Printed Circuit Board Growth Excellence of the Year Award;HIMA Paul Hildebrandt GmbH & Co KG - 2008 Global Safety Solutions Product Value Leadership of the Year Award;Industrial Defender Inc. - 2008 Global Risk Management Process Control & SCADA Solutions Company of the Year Award;Innominate - 2008 Global Ethernet Security Product Value Leadership of the Year AwardIntel Corp. - 2008 Global RFID Emerging Technology of the Year Award;Integrity Applications Ltd. - 2008 North American Biosensors Product Innovation Leadership of the Year Award;Kemira Chemicals Inc. - 2008 North American Pulp & Paper Chemicals Market Share Advancement of the Year Award;Maverick Technologies LLC - 2008 North American System Integrator Company of the Year Award;Omron Scientific Technologies Inc. - 2008 North American Machine Safety Company of the Year Award;PowerID Ltd . - 2008 Global RFID Entrepreneurial Company of the Year Award;Samsung SDI - 2008 Global OLED Display Market Leadership of the Year Award;Telvent G.I.T. SA - 2008 World SCADA Solutions Company of the Year Award;Wonderware - 2008 Global Human Interface Product of the Year Award; andYaskawa Electric America Inc . - 2008 Global Micro Electric Drives (ac Drives less than 10 kW) Customer Value Leadership of the Year Award.

Annual Salary Survey

Before the calendar turned, 2016 already had the makings of a pivotal year for manufacturing, and for the world.

There were the big events for the year, including the United States as Partner Country at Hannover Messe in April and the 2016 International Manufacturing Technology Show in Chicago in September. There's also the matter of the U.S. presidential elections in November, which promise to shape policy in manufacturing for years to come.

But the year started with global economic turmoil, as a slowdown in Chinese manufacturing triggered a worldwide stock hiccup that sent values plummeting. The continued plunge in world oil prices has resulted in a slowdown in exploration and, by extension, the manufacture of exploration equipment.